Westport Trims Nearly 39% of Stakes in Portfolio

Air Products & Chemicals, Precision Castparts top guru's reduction list

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Feb 12, 2016
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Westport Asset Management (Trades, Portfolio) reduced 17 stakes in its portfolio in the fourth quarter. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, consider that it represents nearly 39% of the companies in Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s most noteworthy fourth-quarter reduction was the sale of more than 74% of its stake in Air Products & Chemicals Inc. (APD, Financial), a Detroit-based industrial chemicals and gases company. Westport sold 81,500 shares for an average price of $136.15 per share. The transaction had a -1.41% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s remaining stake of 28,500 shares is 0.01% of Air Products & Chemicals’ outstanding shares and 0.54% of Westport’s total assets. Bill Ackman (Trades, Portfolio) is Air Products & Chemicals’ leading shareholder among the gurus with 20,549,076 shares, which is 9.53% of Air Products & Chemicals’ outstanding shares and 18.79% of Ackman’s total assets.

Air Products & Chemicals has a P/E of 21.1, a forward P/E of 16.1, a P/B of 3.8 and a P/S of 2.8. GuruFocus gives Air Products & Chemicals a Financial Strength rating of 7/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.

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Air Products & Chemicals sold for $127.21 per share Thursday.

Westport trimmed its stake in Precision Castparts Corp. (PCP, Financial), a Portland, Oregon-based aerospace and defense company, by more than 25%. Westport sold 45,061 shares for an average price of $231.16 per share. The deal had a -1.4% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s stake, now 132,144 shares, is 0.1% of Precision Castparts’ outstanding shares and 4.44% of Westport’s total assets. Warren Buffett (Trades, Portfolio) is Precision Castparts’ leading shareholder among the gurus with 4,200,792 shares in his portfolio. The stake is 3.05% of Precision Castparts’ outstanding shares and 0.76% of Buffett’s total assets.

Precision Castparts has a P/E of 24.9, a forward P/E of 17.1, a P/B of 2.8 and a P/S of 3.4. GuruFocus gives Precision Castparts a Financial Strength rating of 8/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 8/10.

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Precision Castparts sold for $234.95 per share Thursday.

Westport pared its stake in Universal Health Services Inc. (UHS, Financial), a King of Prussia, Pennsylvania-based hospital management company, by more than 9%. Westport sold 64,000 shares for an average price of $122.18 per share. The transaction had a -1.08% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s stake in Universal Health Services, now 621,391 shares, is 0.63% of the company’s outstanding shares and 10.74% of the guru’s total assets. Universal Health Services’ leading shareholder among the gurus is Vanguard Health Care Fund (Trades, Portfolio) with a 3,939,340-share stake, which is 4% of the company’s outstanding shares and 0.94% of Vanguard’s total assets.

Universal Health Services has a P/E of 15.2, a forward P/E of 13.4, a P/B of 2.4 and a P/S of 1.2. GuruFocus gives Universal Health Services a Financial Strength rating of 7/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 8/10.

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Universal Health Services sold for $101.65 per share Thursday.

Westport shaved nearly 20% of its stake in Willis Towers Watson PLC (WLTW, Financial), a London-based risk management, insurance and financial consulting firm. Westport sold 66,440 shares for an average price of $118.8 per share. The deal had a -0.98% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport has a 335,409-share stake in Willis Towers Watson, which is 0.49% of the company’s outstanding shares and 4.93% of Westport’s total assets. Willis Towers Watson’s leading shareholder among the gurus is Jeff Ubben (Trades, Portfolio) with 6,955,016 shares. Ubben’s stake is 10.22% of Willis Towers Watson’s outstanding shares and 4.39% of Ubben’s total assets.

Willis Towers Watson has a P/E of 15.5, a forward P/E of 10.8, a P/B of 3.3 and a P/S of 1.9. GuruFocus gives Willis Towers Watson a Financial Strength rating of 6/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.

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Willis Towers Watson sold for $107.13 per share Thursday.

Westport slashed its stake in IPG Photonics Corp. (IPGP, Financial), an Oxford, Massachusetts-based fiber lasers and amplifiers manufacturer, by 24%. Westport sold 70,500 shares for an average price of $85.99 per share. The transaction had a -0.72% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s stake in IPG Photonics is now 223,249 shares – 0.42% of IPG Photonics’ outstanding shares and 2.88% of Westport’s total assets. IPG Photonics’ leading shareholder among the gurus is Columbia Wanger (Trades, Portfolio) with a stake of 1,248,548 shares. Columbia Wanger (Trades, Portfolio)’s stake is 2.37% of IPG Photonics’ outstanding shares and 1.11% of the guru’s total assets.

IPG Photonics has a P/E of 18.2, a forward P/E of 14.8, a P/B of 3.5 and a P/S of 4.9. GuruFocus gives IPG Photonics a Financial Strength rating of 7/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 9/10.

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IPG Photonics sold for $81.53 per share Thursday.

Westport slashed its stake in Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. (AJG, Financial), an Itasca, Illinois-based insurance brokerage, by more than 73%. Westport sold 113,700 shares for an average price of $42.98 per share. The deal had a -0.64% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s stake in Arthur J. Gallagher is now 41,666 shares, which is 0.02% of the company’s outstanding shares and 0.25% of Westport’s total assets. Meridian Funds (Trades, Portfolio) is Arthur J. Gallagher’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 396,100 shares. Meridian’s stake is 0.22% of Arthur J. Gallagher’s outstanding shares and 0.65% of the guru’s total assets.

Arthur J. Gallagher has a P/E of 19, a forward P/E of 12.8, a P/B of 1.8 and a P/S of 1.2. GuruFocus gives Arthur J. Gallagher a Financial Strength rating of 6/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.

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Arthur J. Gallagher & Co. sold for $37.82 per share Thursday.

Westport trimmed its stake in MasterCard Inc. (MA, Financial), a Purchase, New York-based financial services company, by more than 13%. Westport sold 47,500 shares for an average price of $98.04 per share. The transaction had a -0.58% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport now has a 307,500-share stake in MasterCard, which is 0.03% of the company’s outstanding shares and 4.33% of Westport’s total assets. Tom Russo (Trades, Portfolio) is MasterCard’s leading shareholder among the gurus with 9,701,294 shares. The stake is 0.86% of MasterCard’s outstanding shares and 8.07% of the guru’s total assets.

MasterCard has a P/E of 25.2, a forward P/E of 20.2, a P/B of 15.5 and a P/S of 9.8. GuruFocus gives MasterCard a Financial Strength rating of 9/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 8/10.

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MasterCard sold for $82.11 per share Thursday.

Westport pared its stake in Synopsys Inc. (SNPS, Financial), a Mountain View, California-based software company, by more than 8%. Westport sold 91,000 shares for an average price of $48.37 per share. The deal had a -0.57% impact on Westport’s portfolio.

Westport’s remaining stake in Synopsys is 1,026,204 shares, which is 0.68% of Synopsys’ outstanding shares and 6.77% of Westport’s total assets. Synopsys’ leading shareholder among the gurus is Dodge & Cox with 17,258,273 shares. The stake is 11.4% of Synopsys’ outstanding shares and 0.8% of the guru’s total assets.

Synopsys has a P/E of 27.4, a forward P/E of 13, a P/B of 2 and a P/S of 2.9. GuruFocus gives Synopsys a Financial Strength rating of 8/10 and a Profitability and Growth rating of 7/10.

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Synopsys sold for $41.34 per share Thursday.

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